Brussels, 17/11/2009 (Agence Europe) - Foreign ministers of the 27 EU member states and their colleagues for development cooperation discussed, on Tuesday 17 November in Brussels, how the EU could step up its support for democracy in Afghanistan. As Sweden's Foreign Minister and President-in-Office of the External Relations Council, Carl Bildt, said, Afghanistan is a country which is facing “considerable challenges”. Taking the floor, UN Special Representative in Afghanistan Kai Eide shed light on this particularly exemplary textbook case of challenges to be raised, and gave a concrete dimension to the guidelines reached by ministers to improve the EU's support for democracy in developing countries in general.
The debate was held just a few days before Hamid Karzai takes over his post after the contested election which recently fuelled international polemic. “Everyone is ready to admit that Afghanistan is going through a critical time and that it is absolutely necessary to place emphasis on resolving the crisis through support for democracy. We must raise our profile before the people of that country. The EU has decided to play an active role on the basis of the plan for bolstering action in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Some of our ministers will attend Hamid Karzai's inauguration on Thursday”, Carl Bildt told the press. The question of the European military presence in the longer term was tackled, but it cannot go on for ever. “We hope the Afghans will be able to take control of their own internal security. There must be a climate of confidence”, Mr Bildt added.
The Council's conclusions aim to strengthen cohesion and effectiveness of support for democracy, stressed Gunilla Carlsson, Sweden's Development Cooperation Minister, who said: “Our commitment is focused on political and civil support. Afghanistan must have strong and credible institutions. We have different instruments available to us under CFSP and development policy”. In her view, what is needed is to “better coordinate and better help the government to help its population”. Speaking on behalf of the European Commission, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, External Relations Commissioner, added: “For Afghanistan, we are the partner of choice for civil reconstruction”.
During the debate, the Swedish Presidency pointed out that the EU and its member states provided 66% of the aid provided for Afghanistan during 2002 and 2008. Kai Eide noted that the countries which have troops in Afghanistan tend to spend in the south of the country while the economic development potential is in the north. He called for a regional approach that does not only involve Pakistan, but other actors also. Mr Eide also said how important it was for the EU to put its trust in the Afghans and to come into line with their priorities, namely agriculture, education in the broadest sense of the term, infrastructure and economic development, as well as institution building. There have been successes for education and health, he said. It is up to the Afghans to take control of aid coordination. Denmark mentioned the results of a survey whereby 42% of the Afghans today believe that development of their country is on the right track (compared to 39% one year earlier). Spain expressed the hope that, with the external diplomatic service foreseen in the Lisbon Treaty, there will be more consistency in aid to Afghanistan.
A whole range of instruments to be put to best use
In its conclusions, the Council sets out the whole range of instruments and means tailored to the specific situation in each country and which can be used by the EU to step up the cohesiveness of its action aimed at supporting democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights in the world. These tools include policies and actions in accordance with guidelines on human rights, financial instruments, electoral observation missions, ESDP missions (European Security and Defence Policy) and action conducted in a multilateral context.
The Council underlines the need to strengthen coherence, complementarity and the coordination of all action conducted for supporting democracy, and highlights the EU's determination to work within the framework of a true partnership with third countries, international and regional organisations and civil society. As democracy cannot be imposed from outside, the Council underlines the EU's attachment for ownership principles by the partner countries when it comes to strategies and development programmes. (A.N./transl.jl)